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10 Most Endangered Places includes Snake River Basin; Whitebark Pine and San Francisco Bay Delta. by Staff The Oregonian, January 27, 2011

The Snake River Basin is one of the top 10 habitats in the United States to save for wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction in the newest listing by the Endangered Species Coalition. Its report, "It's Getting Hot Out There: Top 10 Places to Save for Endangered Species in a Warming World," identifies some of the species that live in each place, as well as conservation measures to help them survive.

The ecosystems were chosen in large degree by their potential to improve with conservation measures. Scientists also considered the importance of the threatened species living there in making the choices, the coalition says.

Why the rush? The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that 20 to 30 percent of the world's species will be at an increased risk of extinction if temperature increases exceed 3 to 5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. They could succumb to disease, diminished reproduction, lost habitat or reduced food. The report calls on the Obama administration and Congress to provide tools and resources to protect the ecosystems.

And this week, scientists at the National Climatic Data Center announced that 2010 tied with 2005 as the warmest year of the global surface temperature record, beginning in 1880.

Check online for the full report, specific conservation measures and steps you can take in your home and backyard.

Top 10 ecosystems listed and some of their endangered species:

• Snake River Basin: Home to numerous endangered species, including four imperiled runs of salmon and steelhead, the only salmon on the planet that climb so high -- upward of 7,000 feet -- and swim so far -- more than 900 miles inland -- to their natal streams

• Greater Yellowstone ecosystem: Whitebark pine, a foundational species and important food source for animals, including the threatened grizzly bear

• Southwest deserts

• San Francisco Bay-Delta: Home to the imperiled Pacific chinook that swims north to the Oregon coast, Swainson's hawk, tiger salamander and Delta smelt

• Arctic sea ice: Polar bear, Pacific walrus and at least six species of seal

• Shallow water coral reefs: Elkhorn and staghorn coral

• Hawaiian Islands: More than a dozen imperiled birds and 319 at-risk plants

• California Sierra: Home to 30 native species of amphibian, including the yellow-legged frog

• Gulf Coast's flatlands and wetlands: Piping and snowy plovers, Mississippi sandhill crane and numerous sea turtles

• Greater Everglades: 67 threatened and endangered species, including the manatee